The LNM Institute of Information Technology

OPTICAL AMPLIFIERS
By: Ritika Modi (y09uc271) Ritika Sharma (y09uc272) Ruchi Bhatnagar (y09uc276)

Introduction:
Signals transmitted over long distances weaken and need to be re-amplified at regular intervals. This is true whether using copper wire, radio waves or optical fibers. What is Amplification? But things are not simple! When you amplify a signal, you want the amplified signal to be as close as possible to the original signal. SO as to avoid it, a lot of lot of effort is spent in achieving amplification with the highest fidelity!!

Noise in communication System:

Noise is anything that interferes with a message being transmitted from a sender to a receiver. It results from both internal and external factors. And as to measure noise we use SNR. Signal-to-noise ratio, or SNR, is a measurement that describes how much noise is in the output of a device, in relation to the signal level.SNR measurements are usually expressed in decibels

SNR in Optical Amplifier Systems:

In an optical amplifier system, the SNR at the decision circuit is degraded by optical noise, fiber chromatic dispersion, polarization mode dispersion, and fiber nonlinearities. While the exact probability density function for optical noise is not exactly Gaussian, a Gaussian approximation can lead to close BER estimates . The Q factor is the signal-to-noise ratio at the decision circuit in voltage or current units, and is typically expressed by

where 1,0 is the mean value of the marks/spaces rail, and 1,0 is the standard deviation.Since the variation seen around each rail represents a mix of pattern effects, such intersymbol interference (ISI) and noise. Such effects estimates of 1,0.

Measurement TechniqueThe Q factor is measured by recording the BER versus decision level down the center of the eye (i.e., a fixed timing phase). The equivalent mean and sigma of the marks and spaces are determined by fitting this data to a Gaussian characteristic, given by-

where 1,0 and 1,0 arc the mean and standard deviation of the mark and space data rails, D, is the decision level, and erfc (x) is a form of the complementary error function given by:

where the approximation is nearly exact for x > 3. Here the 1,0 and 1,0 are not the physical values in the eye, rather they are equivalent values used to fit the data for the purpose of estimating Q. For measurement of various parameters of our optical devices we use various tools. Some of them are as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4. Optical Vector Analyser(OVA) Optical BlackscatterReflectometer(OBR) Optical Time Domain Reflectometer(OTDR) Chromatic and Polarization mode desperssion(CD/PMD)

Optical Amplifier:
In order to transmit signals over long distances (>100 km) it is necessary to compensate for attenuation losses within the fiber. Initially this was accomplished with an optoelectronic module consisting of an optical receiver, regeneration and equalization system, and an optical transmitter to send the data. Several types of optical amplifiers have since been demonstrated to replace the OE electronic regeneration systems. These systems eliminate the need for E-O and O-E conversions.

The general form of an optical amplifier:

Some types of OAs that have been demonstrated include:

1. Semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs) 2. Fiber Raman and Brillouin amplifiers 3. Rare earth doped fiber amplifiers (erbium EDFA 1500 nm, praseodymium PDFA 1300nm) The most practical optical amplifiers to date include the SOA and EDFA types. So in this paper we will be discussing these two

1. Semiconductor Optical Amplifier (SOA)

Similar to a laser cavity. Used as a discrete amplifiers. They can be integrated into arrays of amplifying switching and gating devices. Finding application in all optical 3R-regeneration systems

Characteristics of SOA types:

Polarization dependent require polarization maintaining fiber Relatively high gain ~20 dB Output saturation power 5-10 dBm Large BW Can operate at 800, 1300, and 1500 nm wavelength regions. Compact and easily integrated with other devices Can be integrated into arrays High noise figure and cross-talk levels due to nonlinear phenomenon such as 4-wave mixing.

DISADVANTAGE
Limited in operation below 10 Gb/s. (Higher rates are possible with lower gain.)

2.Rare Earth Doped Fiber Amplifier

Rare earth doped fiber amplifiers are finding increasing importance in optical Communication system. Perhaps the most important version is erbium dopedfiber amplifiers (EDFAs) due to their ability to amplify signals at the low loss 1.55m wavelength range.

Characteristics of EDFAs (advantages):

High power transfer efficiency from pump to signal power (> 50%). Wide spectral band amplification with relative flat gain (>20 dB) --Useful for WDM applications. Saturation output > 1 mW (10 to 25 dBm). Gain-time constant long (>100 msec) to overcome patterning effects and intermodulation distortions ( low noise). Large dynamic range. Low noise figure. Polarization independent. Suitable for long-haul applications.

Disadvantages of EDFAs:
Relatively large devices (km lengths of fiber) not easily integrated with other devices. ASE amplified spontaneous emission. Cross-talk effects. Gain saturation effects.

An energy level diagram for Er doped silica is shown below:

Pumping is primarily done optically with the primary pump wavelengths at 1.48 um and 0.98 um. As indicated atoms pumped to the 4I (11/2) 0.98 um band decays to the primary emission transition band. Pumping with 1.48 um light is directly to the upper transition levels of the emission band.

Semiconductor lasers have been developed for both pump wavelengths. 10-20 mW of absorbed pump power at these wavelengths can produce 30-40 dB of amplifier gain. Pump Efficiencies of 11 dB/mW achieved at 980 nm. Pumping can also be performed at 820 and 670 nm with GaAlAs laser diodes. Pump efficiencies are lower but these lasers can be made with high output power.

Basic Characteristics:
Optical Gain Rare earth doped optical amplifiers work much like a laser. The primary difference is that they do not have a resonator. Amplification occurs primarily through the stimulated emission process. The medium is pumped until a population inversion state is achieved. Pump powers are typically several 20-250 mW. An isolator is used to reduce reflections at the input to the amplifier. A narrow band optical filter is used to reduce transmission of amplified spontaneous emission frequency components. The resultant optical gain depends both on the optical frequency and the local beam intensity within the amplifier section.

Gain Spectrum and BW:

When not saturated (i.e. P/Ps <<1) the gain coefficient g() become:

Gain is maximum when = o (i.e. the gain coefficient is at resonance). At non-resonant frequencies the gain follows the homogeneously broadened characteristics of a two level atom (i.e. Lorentzian profile). The gain BW for this spectrum is typically expressed as the (Full Width at Half Maximum) FWHM g= 2/T2

Large Spectral BW amplifiers are preferred for fiber optic systems to make them less sensitive to dispersed transmitted signals and useful for WDM systems.

EDFA Gain Spectrum:

The gain spectrum of erbium ions alone is homogeneously broadened and the BW is determined by the dipole relaxation time T2.

However when placed in a glass host the spectrum is influenced both by the silica and any other dopants. This can result in inhomogeneous broadening contributions. The combined homogeneous and inhomogeneous BW of EDFAs: ~ 30 nm

Amplification factor:
Define as: G = P out /Pin Pout is the amplifier output power and Pin the input power of a CW input signal.

From the previous discussion of the laser the gain in optical power per length of gain medium (z) with gain g is

The amplification factor after a length L of OAM (optical amplifier medium) is

Both g() and G() are a maximum when the frequency is at resonance = o and decrease when the frequency is detuned from resonance. However the amplifier factor(G) decreases much faster than the gain coefficient(g).

The amplifier BW A is defined as the FWHM of G()

whereg is the gain BW, and Go = exp(goL). The amplifier BW is smaller than the gain BW. The difference depends on the amplifier gain characteristics. If Go = 10, = 0.656Ag

Gain Saturation:
G will start to decrease with an increase in optical power P. Since g() depends on the incident optical power when P PS, Assume that the incident frequency is tuned for peak gain ( = o)

With the conditions P(0) = Pincand P(L) = Pout = GPincthe large signal amplifier gain decreases when Pout Ps.

Output saturation power the optical power at which G is reduced to Go/2 (3 dB) Typically Go =1000 (30 dB),

Amplifier Noise:
Spontaneous emission in the amplifier will degrade the SNR by adding to the noise during the amplification process. SNR degradation is quantified through the amplifier noise figure Fn

where the SNR is based on the electrical power after converting the optical signal to an electrical current. Therefore Fnis referenced to the detection process and depends on parameters such as detector bandwidth (Be) and thermal and shot noise.

Consider a simple case with an ideal detector with performance limited by shot noise . The amplifier has an amplification factor G (Pout = G Pin). SNR of the input signal:

For most amplifiers Fn > 3 dB and can be 6-8 dB Characteristic plot of gain and noise figure for an erbium doped fiber amplifier pumped ~30 mW at 980 nm

Gain Equilization:
The amplifiers have a wavelength-dependent gain; i.e., some wavelengths are amplified more than others. A gain-flattening filter restores all wavelengths to approximately the same intensity. Erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFA) operate in the 1530-1565 nm wavelength range.

EDFA Gain Equalization

Gain equalization can be accomplished in several ways: a. Thin film filters b. Long period fiber gratings c. Chirped fiber Bragg gratings

Conclusion:
Optical Amplifier (OA) is a highly versatile component that can be deployed for a wide range of amplification and routing. The fast nonlinear characteristics of OAs are very attractive for a number of applications such as optical signal processing, clock recovery, ultra fast optical time multiplexing/demultiplexing, pulse shaping, optical routing, dispersion compensation and wavelength conversion in WDM applications. The minimal space requirements, integration capability, and strong potential for cost reduction through scaled manufacturing processes will ensure that the OA plays an increasingly important role in future advanced optical networks. OAs are a cost-effective solution to implementing optical amplification in advanced optical networking subsystems for core, metro, and ultimately access applications.

References :
http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Optical_amplification http://www.inphenix.com/pdfdoc/Application_Notes_for_SOAs.pdf http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical_amplifier http://photonicssociety.org/newsletters/oct07/margin_measurement.pdf http://www.fiber-optics.info/articles/optical_amplifiers